In order to move efficiently and effortlessly in all ranges and planes of motion as well as perform athletic and similar physical movements, increased flexibility is an asset. This is particularly true as people age. Starting in their thirties and often even much younger, they become slowly and steadily less flexible with an impact on wellness and physical conditioning. Flexibility is lost at a rate of 1% a year whereby it does not take too many years before individuals begin to feel the effects of aging. This becomes a problem for individuals regularly using their athletic abilities, particularly those who perform at an elevated amateur or professional level. In addition, persons with a variety of physical disabilities often find stretching will increase range of movement thereby enhancing life style despite the disability issues.
In order to prevent the loss or decrease of flexibility, the concept of stretching before a physical or athletic endeavor such as playing ball, golfing, dancing and any number of similar physical activities is well known to the participants who engage in these events. Warm-up stretching is commonly done before an event. Also, stretching is incorporated into most serious training programs in order to gain maximum benefit for the performer. In addition to exercises that are done alone by a performer, a wide variety of stretching exercises are used when the performer seeks to work with individuals such as body workers, therapists, trainers and coaches as part of a training protocol. Stretching exercises and manipulations are performed with the aid of an assistant trained to maximize the individual's performance. Specifically, a trainer may move or push an individual's arm or leg to a stretched position to loosen muscle and fascia tissue. This application of force often requires the individual to be grounded or otherwise secured to a support surface to maintain the maximum stretch of a particular limb or body part being worked on without body movement.
Various types of straps and belts have been used to secure an individual to a treatment table in order to maintain the individual in the same position during the stretching force application. A common practice is to wrap straps or belts under the table and around various body parts of the individual being stretched. For example if the legs are being stretched, a strap would likely be placed around the torso or hips of the individual in such a way to allow full movement of the legs while maintaining the torso in a relatively fixed position. Similarly if the individual's arms are to be stretched, it is likely a strap would be placed under the table and around the chest. Whereas these straps do provide some support, they usually are not secured and often move or slide during the application of the stretching force and thereby make the exercise more difficult to control.
The prior art also discloses tables with permanently attached straps that are fixed to the table sides and are designed to wrap over an individual lying on the table to secure the individual in an unmovable, fixed position. Being fixed, this arrangement is limited in adjustability since it does not fit all sizes of individuals who may need the stretching techniques. At best fixed straps require particular individuals to readjust their position with each stretching procedure.
Still another prior art structure for securing an individual in place on a table to facilitate a stretching procedure is formed of a strap having a clip or similar securing device on the end of the strap that is attached directly to the table. A shortcoming of this structure is the requirement of readjusting the location of the strap with each individual procedure and with different sized individuals receiving the work.